


Secrets

by starryeyedchar



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gay Keith (Voltron), How Do I Tag, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Misgendering, Sort of? - Freeform, Transphobia, it was a prompt about an alien that misgenders lance on my tumblr okay, trans!Lance, transgender character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-01
Updated: 2017-09-01
Packaged: 2018-12-22 15:06:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11969907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starryeyedchar/pseuds/starryeyedchar
Summary: Only half the team knew.Contrary to their belief, Lance was actually an expert secret keeper. With a large family like his, he had to know when to keep his mouth shut. So, despite the loud, obnoxious, open persona he displayed for the others, he could also be sneaky.So, keeping a secret on an unbelievably large castle ship with only six other people on it was easy.Or at least, it should've been.(AKA Lance is trans, and because of a really terrible alien, the team finds out.)





	Secrets

**Author's Note:**

> This was for a prompt on my tumblr. I hope you enjoy reading it here, too!

Only half the team knew.

Contrary to their belief, Lance was actually an expert secret keeper. With a large family like his, he had to know when to keep his mouth shut. So, despite the loud, obnoxious, open persona he displayed for the others, he could also be sneaky.

He'd the had practice of years sneaking out of the Garrison, or even his house when he was little to go see the beach at night with his siblings.

So, keeping a secret on an unbelievably large castle ship with only six other people on it was easy.

Or at least, it should've been.

Admittedly, Lance managed to hide lots of stuff from his fellow team members. Little injuries he didn't want to worry them with, the thoughts piled up in his head that would just upset them if they knew, things like that.

This secret, however, was a bit more difficult to hide. Still, he managed for a while.

* * *

Lance had told Hunk, of course, back at the Garrison. They'd been roommates, after all, and he knew the other would find out pretty quickly. In order to avoid all the questions that would be asked the first time Hunk inevitably walked in while Lance wasn't wearing a binder, he told him the very first day.

Hunk was incredibly supportive, promising he didn't care. Lance was also extremely grateful that he agreed to keep it a secret from the teachers, despite that hiding even something small stressed the boy out.

Because Lance's mother had lied on his application forms. As far as the Garrison knew, he was just a regular, cis, heterosexual boy. Lance was extremely relieved by this, since the Garrison didn't really have the best reputation for being LGBTQ+ friendly, and Iverson tormented him enough with the material he had.

On their second day in space, Hunk had told Lance that he should probably tell everyone else, but Lance couldn't bring himself to. Hunk respected his choice, and told Lance that he'd never tell them, but they both knew the rest of the team would figure it out eventually.

Still, it was nice, not having them look at him differently.

* * *

Lance didn't particularly want to tell Pidge, but he ended up having to anyway, through no fault of his own.

It wasn't as if Lance had _planned_ to be stuck in space for who knows how long. He hadn't exactly packed a bag. Hell, he only had one Earth outfit with him. He considered himself lucky he'd been wearing his binder.

When the telltale cramps arrived, Lance knew he was screwed. He'd searched the infirmary before, but came up empty. No pads or tampons anywhere in sight.

So, he knocked on Pidge's door, a bundle of nerves. Allura was the alternative choice, though, and he wasn't sure if being transgender was a _thing_ f or Alteans. Or if they even had periods.

Pidge opened the door, glaring at him. “What do you want?”

“What do you do when you get your period?” The words came out in a rush, and Lance clapped his hands over his mouth afterward.

Pidge stared at him for a moment, before going to slam the door in his face.

“No! No, Pidge wait!” He wedged his foot in the door, and she scowled. “It's... uh, it's really important.”

“Lance, it's kind of rude to be asking me this,” she informed him. “And why the fuck do you even want to _know_?”

He took a deep breath. “Because... oh man. I'm... trans. And I need pads. Like, right now. Please, just help me out here?”

Her expression changed in a second. “You're...? Woah. Um.” She was completely at a loss for words. “This better not be one of your jokes—”

“If you want me to prove it, I will, but I'd really like to avoid that and just get some pads, thank you.”

She held up her hands, and retreated into the room. “Nope. No proving necessary, Lance, I trust you. Just come to me whenever you need more,” She returned, handing him a box of pads. “Allura gives them to me. No idea where she gets them.”

“You're... not going to ask anything else about it? Like why I kept it a secret?”

Pidge snorted. “Lance, you thought I was a boy for the first year I knew you. I'm sure you had your reasons for keeping it from the team, but it doesn't matter to me. You're still the idiot I know and love.”

Lance could barely contain his sigh of relief. “Thanks, Pidge.”

She nodded, eyes still surveying him. Calculating. “Anytime. Hunk knows, doesn't he?”

Lance nodded sheepishly. “Ever since the Garrison.”

“Figures,” Pidge scoffed.

* * *

Coran knew before Pidge, technically speaking, but it wasn't until Lance was returning from Pidge's room, several months later, with a box of pads that Lance learned this.

He stammered for a few seconds, hiding the box behind his back and managing to say, “I can explain!”

Coran smiled at him softly, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “I've known for some time,” he told Lance. “Found out in the scans from the pod, when Sendak bombed the castle. I was confused at first, but I've known Alteans who are the same. I'm not sure what they call it in your language.”

“Oh! Uh, transgender.” Lance was failing to keep a small smile off his own face.

“Transgender,” Coran echoed, as if testing the word. He smiled again. “Well, my boy, your secret's always safe with me. But I'm sure if and when you decide to tell the others, they'll support you, too.”

“Thanks, Coran,” Lance started back towards his room, but the older man called out to him again.

“Oh, one more thing. I decided I'd ask you when you decided to tell me, but now's as good a time as any. I believe we have some sort of shot in the infirmary that transitioning Alteans would use over time? I'd have to test it to see if it's compatible with human DNA, but if you'd like me to search for it in the infirmary for you, I can.”

Lance hugged him.

* * *

He knew keeping the others in the dark couldn't possibly last, but Lance was working up the courage. Slowly, but surely. He figured he'd tell Allura next, as they'd gotten much closer following the lion switch.

But, as it turned out, the universe hated Lance, so of course something like _this_ had to happen.

It was a diplomatic meeting, nothing stressful. They were attending a feast on a planet of aliens they'd just saved, Netilia. The Netilians were very short, stout, and almost entirely covered in fur. Pidge had decided to refer to them as 'less cute Ewoks', which had Hunk and Lance stifling laughter.

A Netilian servant and their King came to the castle, bringing the traditional garments that they were instructed to wear to the feast, as was custom for visitors on their planet.

They brought four that looked like a strange kind of suit. And three dresses.

“Excuse me, but why did you bring three dresses?” Allura asked, looking at the clothes in confusion. “We only require two.”

“It is customary for all females to wear dresses to ceremonies in our culture. I'd hoped the three of you wouldn't mind,” the leader explained. Allura just looked at the rest of the team, bewildered.

“We only have two girls on this team,” Pidge said slowly.

Hunk had placed a hand on Lance's shoulder, but he shrugged it off, forcing a laugh. “Guess you really should get a haircut, Keith. Your hair is so long, they think you're a girl!”

Keith scowled, probably all set with some witty comeback. But he never got to say it.

“The third female in the group is... you, is it not?” the alien asked, looking directly at Lance. The blue paladin fidgeted nervously, taking several steps backward. “Forgive me, but there is a subtle different in how genders naturally smell, detectable by my people's enhanced senses. We brought this dress for you, miss.”

Lance took another step back. He shook his head. “No, I'm... I'm not a girl. My name is Lance, I pilot the red lion.”

“Leave him alone,” Pidge's voice was like venom, and it stopped Keith in his tracks, about to ask what the hell was going on. “Just give him a damn suit already.”

“What... what the green paladin _means_ to say is, this little misunderstanding can be easily cleared up if you'll replace the extra dress with the male attire,” Coran suggested, looking back at Lance nervously.

Hunk had an arm around Lance's shoulders now, and he was glaring at the aliens, but didn't speak.

“This is... odd,” Allura began, unsure of what to say. “But I can assure you, there must be some mistake. Lance is a boy.”

“Yeah, no doubt about that,” Keith seconded. “Have you ever seen the guy when around girls?”

Shiro nodded in agreement, looking slightly amused by the whole thing. “This must be a joke right? To break the diplomatic ice, so to speak?”

The alien shook his head, now glaring up at Lance. “Why would you lie to your team?” he asked, with a frown. “Voltron is the protector of the universe. To think that a paladin, a defender of the innocent, would lie about such a thing shows how untrustworthy you clearly are! Even now, when proven, you claim innocence.”

“I'm not lying!” Lance insisted. He was starting to tremble. “I'm _not_ a girl! You've... you've got it wrong. Please, just... leave me alone!”

“Someone shut this alien up,” Pidge growled. "Or I am _going_ to attack him. Diplomatic relations be damned."

“I'm not sure I'm comfortable having an alliance with someone who would lie about her identity on the team,” the Netilian leader declared. “She should probably be removed from her post as paladin as soon as possible, or Netilia will not join the confederation.”

Lance looked like he was going to be sick. “I.... I have to go,” he managed to get out, before dashing off in the direction of his room.

Everyone was silent for a moment.

“What the _hell_ just happened?” Keith demanded, looking around at all of them. The second his eyes landed on Hunk, the yellow paladin jumped.

“Hunk, if you know something you have to tell us,” Shiro ordered. “This is supposed to be a team. What's going on?”

Hunk shifted from foot to foot, clearly very uncomfortable. “I'm sorry Shiro, but before I was a paladin, I was Lance's friend. And I made him a promise, and I'm going to keep it. You'll have to ask him yourself.” With that said, he ran after Lance.

“Your friend is not a 'him',” the alien said, impatiently. “I don't see why you choose to ignore what I'm telling you about her.”

“Get him off of the castle,” Pidge said through gritted teeth. “Before I beat the _shit_ out of him for what he just did to Lance.”

“Now, now, Pidge,” Coran held up his hands in a peace-making gesture. Though he, too, kept casting worried glances toward the blue paladin's room. “He obviously didn't know what he was doing.”

“I don't know what's going on, but you have clearly deeply upset one of my paladins, and I cannot stand for that,” Allura fixed the two Netilians with a cold glare. “Please leave my ship. Immediately.”

The second they were gone, Keith whirled on Coran and Pidge. “Would one of you explain what the _fuck_ is going on?”

“Lance is trans.” It came from Shiro, surprisingly, and Pidge's eyes snapped up to him.

“You _knew_?”

“No, but I had a friend who was at school, back in my Garrison days,” Shiro told them. “Would never have guessed otherwise. I never would've thought... Lance hid it from us all so well.”

“Yeah,” Pidge mumbled under her breath, glaring at the flood. “Lance hides a lot of things.”

“Wait,” Keith interrupted. “So... Lance is...?”

“Keith, because it's you I might cut you some slack. But you better be careful about your lack of social etiquette anyway, because this is Lance we're talking about,” Pidge deadpanned. “And _yes_. Lance is trans.”

Keith's eyes widened with realization, followed by fury. “Allura, lower the particle barrier. I'm going to go talk with that alien.”

Allura was half way to the control panel before Coran stopped her. “This will only cause more conflict. I think it's most important to worry about poor Lance right now, don't you? I'm sure he didn't want the three of you to find out this way.”

“Three of us?” Shiro asked. “Coran, you knew too?”

“Cryropod scans.”

“I didn't know until after Coran, technically,” Pidge piped up. “Hunk found out at the Garrison, but Lance needed... me, and he told me. Here. In space.”

“What'd he need you for?” Keith asked, completely oblivious.

Pidge stared at him blankly, clearly surprised that one person could be so clueless. “ _Pads_ , Keith. He needed pads.”

Keith's face instantly went bright red. “Right. Um... yeah. Of course. Sorry I asked.”

Hunk walked back into the room just then, took one look at all of their expressions, and sighed. “Nice going, Pidge.”

“It's not my fault! Shiro guessed!”

“Is... is he okay?” Keith wondered.

Hunk hesitated. “He's still pretty upset. It's been a while since someone he didn't want to know found out, and so it's been a while since he's been misgendered but... he'll be okay. Lance is tough,” Hunk assured them all, and then looked back at Keith. “He wanted to talk to you. First, at least.”

Keith blanched. “Me?! Why would he want to talk to _me_? I'm terrible at this stuff!”

“He doesn't want to hear it from me, because he knows I accept him already,” Hunk tells him. “Keith, it's really important to him that you accept him, too.”

“But... why?! When has Lance ever cared what I thought?” Even as Keith said this, a certain conversation came to mind.

_Must really be bothering you if you came to talk to me._

_Well... you're the team leader now, right?_

Hunk smiled sadly. “You'll have to ask him yourself.”

Keith only hesitated for a moment before knocking on the door. He didn't expect Lance to open it almost immediately, as he had never actually been inside the paladin's room before. Still, Lance had practically no boundaries when it came to privacy. Or... at least, he'd thought so, anyway.

Lance stepped aside to let Keith pass, and then immediately took a seat on the bed, leaving Keith to stand awkwardly and observe him. The taller boy had pulled his hood up over his head, and his blue eyes were red rimmed. So Lance had been crying.

That thought alone was enough to make Keith want to storm outside the castle and wring that alien's neck. Lance was supposed to be the cheerful one, always boosting the team's mood with his grins and terrible jokes. The idea of him crying was just... wrong.

“Well?” Lance asked, and Keith jumped.

“Well... what?”

Lance rolled his eyes, but Keith didn't miss him bringing a hand up to rub at them. “ _Well_ , where's the long, inspirational leader speech? 'Lance you're still a part of the team, owning up to this will make you a better paladin,' all that sappy bullshit.”

Keith offered him a small smile. “I've never been that good at speeches.”

Lance snorted. “That's an understatement.”

“If you want a speech, Shiro's the person to ask” Keith told him, averting his eyes. “He's the real leader, anyway.”

“I didn't want to talk to Shiro,” Lance said bluntly. “I wanted to talk to _you_. I don't know why you haven't realized it yet, Keith, but you're a great leader. When you're not making stupid decisions without consulting anyone else, that is. But I think we've grown past that.” And then Lance smiled, and Keith couldn't help but feel a crushing relief.

“Still don't get why you'd want to talk about this with me of all people,” Keith muttered. “We all know I'm the worst at this stuff. Since when have you cared what _anyone_ thought?”

Lance sighed, still smiling, but there was something sad about it. “If you really think that, then you don't know me at all.”

Keith wasn't sure what to say to that.

Lance sighed again, gesturing at the bed beside him. “Are you going to sit, or just stand there? Because you look more uncomfortable than I feel, and it's disconcerting.”

Keith sat next to Lance on the bed, leaving a decent amount of space between them.

“If you think this will change anyone's opinion of you, at all, you're wrong,” Keith said, finally breaking the silence. “And I know you're expecting me to say that, but it's true. Pidge told us all she was a boy! I'm literally part _alien_ Lance. We've been a team for over a year now. This doesn't change who you are to us. You're Lance. Our sharpshooter.” Keith couldn't help the fond smile that came over his face. “Our goofball.”

Lance started, looking back at him. The word didn't feel like an insult.

“Still don't know why you'd want to hear my opinion on the subject, but if someone you hate thinks so highly of you, you can't possibly think the others would disagree, right?” Keith asked, with a small laugh.

“I've never hated you.” The words were out of Lance's mouth before he thought about them. “Honestly, your opinion probably matters... the most, to me.”

Keith was completely at a loss. “What...?”

Lance wouldn't look at him. “Because your name is what I've been measured against ever since the Garrison. Because you're the one person I've been trying to catch up to.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “Because... because if I can be on the same level as someone so talented, and smart, and strong, and _brave_... then I can't be that bad, right?”

“Lance—”

“And I know it's stupid,” Lance waved him off. “I know I should've told you guys, that we aren't supposed to keep secrets. And I feel terrible about it! And I knew that none of you would ever be against it, but... I was still _scared_ , you know, and I just didn't want you to see me differently!"

Keith drew in a slow, steady breath. “I'm gay?” He didn't mean for it to come out as a question.

Lance fell off the bed.

Keith couldn't help it— he burst into laughter as the other stared up at him in shock.

“Jesus _christ_ Keith, you can't just spring that on me out of the blue! What the hell?!” Lance had a hand pressed to his chest, as if the news had nearly made him have a heart attack.

Keith composed himself long enough to reply. “Shiro's the only other person who knows. So no, don't feel bad about keeping it a secret. We keep secrets from each other all the time. You weren't ready to tell us. And it sucks that the alien kind of ruined it, but now we know, and you know there was no reason to be scared.”

Lance smirked, and Keith felt his heart warm. This is the Lance he knew. “You better not be trying to one up _my_ secret.”

“Wha— no, Lance, I was just trying to show you that—”

“Because I'm bi!” Lance declared at the top of his lungs, standing up and planting his hands on his hips. “So, ha! Beat that!”

“I'm _literally_ an alien.”

Lance dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “Wasn't today, doesn't count. I appreciate you confiding in me, but if you think you can steal my secret thunder, then you've got another thing coming.”

“Your _secret thunder_?”

Lance nodded, still grinning. At least Keith had managed to cheer him up, but this wasn't exactly what he'd had in mind.

“Admit it. I'm the king of keeping secrets.”

Keith wanted to mention that he couldn't be the king of _keeping_ secrets by one-upping everything he told him, but he figured that the Cuban boy wouldn't care. So, instead, Keith wracked his brain for a secret. With anyone else, he would've dropped the subject, but this was Lance.

“I think I might be in love with you?” Keith offered, holding his breath.

He regretted saying it the second it came out of his mouth. Lance's smile instantly disappeared.

“You...?” He trailed off, and Keith stood, starting for the door with an apology on his lips.

But he never reached it.

Because Lance grabbed his arm, yanked him back towards him, and then... they were kissing.

Lance was _kissing_ him.

Keith knew that he and the others had made fun of Lance's flirting numerous times, saying he'd probably never even kissed anyone before. But it was clear that he knew _exactly_ what he was doing.

When they broke apart, Keith was gasping for breath. Lance was smirking at him, a faint blush across his cheeks.

“I still win,” he declared, in a barely audible whisper.

Keith immediately shoved Lance away. “Oh my god, I _hate_ you.”

Lance just kept on grinning. “Oh, really? Cause earlier I could've sworn you said—”

“Just... just... shut up and kiss me!” Keith's voice was practically a shout. He didn't care.

Lance laughed, but he wasn't slow to oblige.

 

 


End file.
